University of Foreign Military and Cultural Studies / Red Teaming

The University of Foreign Military and Cultural Studies (UFMCS), brings a unique, tailored approach to providing education focused on decision support. The core of our curriculum is based on applied critical thinking, fostering cultural empathy, self-awareness and reflection, and groupthink mitigation. Our premise is that people and organizations court failure in predictable ways, and that they do so by degrees, almost imperceptible, and that they do so according to their mindset, biases, and experience, which are formed in large part by culture and context. Our education involves more than Socratic discussion and brainstorming. We believe that good decision processes are essential to good outcomes. To that end, our curriculum is rich in divergent processes, red team tools, and liberating structures, all aimed at decision support. We borrow techniques, methods, frameworks, and best practices from several sources and disciplines to create an education and practical application method that we find to be the best safeguard against individual and organizational tendencies toward biases, errors in cognition, and groupthink. Our approach has proven effective in units and organizations from brigades to the Joint Staff. Click here for our Information Brochure.

UFMCS offers five ATRRS managed programs of instruction: An 18 week Leaders Course, a 9 week Stop-Gap Leaders Course, a 6 week Members Course, a 2 week Critical Thinking for Red Team Practitioners Course (no ASI), and 2-28 day Tailored Critical Thinking and Groupthink Mitigation programs. All UFMCS courses are also available as MTTs.

What is Red Teaming

Red Teaming is a function executed by trained, educated, and practiced team members that provides commanders an independent capability to fully explore alternatives in plans, operations, concepts, organizations, and capabilities in the context of the operational environment and from the perspectives of our partners, adversaries, and others.

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Our Mission

The UFMCS mission is to develop Army leaders who are agile and adaptive critical thinkers capable of operating effectively in complex and rapidly changing operational environments.

To achieve this mission, UFMCS provides functional training for ASI 7G (Red Team Leader) and ASI 7J (Red Team Member). In addition to ASI producing education, UFMCS also provides short courses focused on Applied Critical Thinking, Groupthink Mitigation and Organizational Innovation. Finally, UFMCS provides professional senior level Facilitation support to Army organizations.